ABOUT THE BRAND
The Catholic Center at NYU is a spiritual and intellectual home for students seeking to grow in faith, friendship, and purpose in the heart of New York City. Entrusted to the Dominican Friars of the Province of Saint Joseph by the Archdiocese of New York, the Center supports students at NYU and other Manhattan colleges in their academic and career goals while helping them deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ through the life of the Church.
The Center offers daily sacraments and spiritual direction, as well as a space for prayer, study, and community. It also fosters mentorship by connecting students with Catholic professionals in business, the arts, and education.
This branding guide establishes a unified visual identity for The Catholic Center at NYU and all its affiliated clubs and ministries. The brand draws inspiration from the refined hospitality of boutique hotels and the aspirational elegance of legacy fashion houses. Through consistent design, we aim to communicate the depth, warmth, and unity at the heart of The Catholic Center at NYU’s mission.
SHIELD VARIANTS
As explained earlier in this branding guide, “shield” versions of each logo are provided. They combine a simplified version of an organization’s logo in one half, with the other half comprised of two quadrants representing the crests of the Order of Preachers and the Archdiocese of New York respectively.
These marks are designed for use at smaller scales. These shields should also be used whenever the various ministries are represented next to one another on the same page. Since a coat of arms or crest offers a sense of heritage, designers might choose to use these marks on formal packaging, invitation-only events, or merchandise where subtlety is desired (like a lapel pin or pocket).
Like all other brand marks, the shields are available in dark, light, and color variants. Non-NYU-affiliated schools use only dark and light, not color.
All versions of these shields are left intentionally transparent, without background, and must be left that way. That is, the background image must show through, giving the impression that the shield has been “stamped.”
CMYK: C70 M67 Y65 K74
RGB: R34 G31 B31
HEX: #221f1f
White
CMYK: C4 M2 Y2 K0
RGB: R242 G242 B242
HEX: #f2f2f2
NYU Deep Violet
CMYK: C92 M100 Y23 K28
RGB: R51 G6 B98
HEX: #330662
Lab
CMYK: C2 M7 Y34 K0
RGB: R252 G232 B180
HEX: #fce8b4
Dominican
Graphite
Yellow
COLOR PALETTE
Four colors are provided for the brand: Graphite (#221f1f), Dominican White (#f2f2f2), NYU Deep Violet (#330662), and Yellow Lab (#fce8b4). It is extremely important to note that this brand NEVER uses black or white in any application, be it web or print, as the starkness of these colors would undermine the brand’s slightly faded aesthetic and timeless look. Instead, Graphite should be used whenever a designer would normally default to black, and Dominican White should be used whenever a designer would normally default to black.
According to NYU’s own branding guide, “violet is a distinctive color that has long been associated with he nonconformist who pushes boundaries to leave their mark on the world.” Rather than use the school’s primary violet shade, however, this brand opts to utilize its secondary shade of “Deep Violet,” suggesting a robust maturity that is less electric than the primary shade .
Finally, to brighten compositions, a pale yellow shade is offered. It draws its name from an excitable and playful Labrador, mirroring its role in the color palette.
NEXA FOR BIG HEADLINES
MONSTSERRAT FOR HEADINGS
EB Garamond is to be used for body copy. It’s a free and open source implementation of Claude Garamond’s typeface, Garamond, and the matching Italic, Greek and Cyrillic characters designed by Robert Granjon. Its name is a shortening of Egenolff–Berner Garamond; the letter forms are taken from the Egenolff–Berner specimen printed in 1592.
StephenGillion for scribbles and notes
TYPOGRAPHY
Nexa Bold is used for the logo and large-scale headlines. With its clean geometry and strong presence, Nexa conveys confidence and modernity— perfect for anchoring core messages and establishing brand recognition.
Montserrat serves as the primary heading font, offering a contemporary, versatile look that complements Nexa without overpowering it. Its clear structure ensures readability across applications.
EB Garamond is used for body copy. A refined, classic serif, it evokes the dignity of printed theology texts and historic manuscripts, grounding the brand in intellectual and ecclesial tradition. Text laid out in this font should be justified with last line aligned left or right, again to evoke vintage newspapers and books.
StephenGillion, a hand-drawn script font, may be used sparingly for annotations, emphasis, or visual texture. Its scribbled character brings a human warmth and spontaneity—reminiscent of a student’s margin notes.
PHOTOS & IMAGERY
In juxtaposition with the refined elegance of the logos and illustrative elements, the imagery associated with the brand brings the texture and grit of the city to life. Color photos should never be used . Instead, photos should be produced in black and white and with paper and “noise” textured applied. This has two functions: to evoke newspapers and bookplates (thereby complementing the logos themselves) and to create a sense of continuity with the many images from the brand’s history (which in the case of the Newman Club dates back to the 1890s). Likewise, designers should use candid rather than posed photos, mixing vintage and modern imagery, creating a sense of a spiritual throughline from past to present.
These images can also be overlaid with Ben Day Dot patterns, gritty textures, or combined with other elements to create mixed media collages as seen throughout this guide. The compositions should feel as though cut apart by hand from magazines, newspapers, and old books, laid on top of each other at odd angles.
Finally, illustrative elements like the hound or the torch flame can be used for pops of color (within the color palette).
Master logo used for headings
PRINT APPLICATIONS
Print materials should embody the brand’s balance of elegance and grit— refined but tactile, intellectual but alive. Use Graphite and Dominican White as foundational tones; NYU Deep Violet and Yellow Lab may be introduced as subtle accents, but never dominate. Avoid pure black or white entirely to preserve the brand’s warm, lived-in tone.
When incorporating logos, default to using the master logo (in an appropriate color variant) for headers or official settings. “NYU Catholic” should only be used in informal contexts, and the other logos according to scale parameters.
Shield is used at document base and/or in place of a seal/crest
Typography should follow the established hierarchy: Nexa for bold statements and titles; Montserrat for clarity in headings; EB Garamond, justified, for longform body text; and StephenGillion, used sparingly, to introduce personality.
Designers are encouraged to layer imagery and text elements with a mixedmedia sensibility—like a physical collage of torn paper, bookplates, and handscrawled notes. Halftone patterns, Ben Day Dots, and ink smudges can all be used to evoke analog texture.
WEB APPLICATIONS
On the web, The Catholic Center at NYU’s visual identity should convey elegance and depth without sacrificing usability. Backgrounds should favor Dominican White, avoiding true white for a softer, aged-paper effect. Text should use Graphite, never black, and contrast should be carefully managed to maintain readability without starkness.
Avoid flat, glossy aesthetics. Instead, incorporate grain textures, layered visuals, and black-and-white photography treated with noise and halftone filters to suggest depth and history. Digital compositions can echo the tactile feel of the brand’s print work, using angled layouts, vintage-inspired collages, and cut-out effects to introduce a lived-in feel. When possible, individual “paper” elements should be brought to life with parallax style effects and scroll-triggered animations. For inspiration, see the Melia London Kensington or the Hotel Saint Vincent, New Orleans websites.
Custom matchbooks are a tasteful souvenir
Merchandise should feel like found objects—useful, beautiful, and quietly intriguing. Each piece should serve a real function in students’ daily lives, while also reflecting the brand’s understated elegance and analog aesthetic. The goal is not overt promotion, but quiet curiosity. Items should spark conversation organically, allowing brand affiliation to be discovered rather than declared.
Canvas totes in muted tones, printed with ink-bleed textures or subtle symbolic elements (such as the torch or hound) rather than overt logos, offer students a practical and stylish way to carry books or groceries while evoking the tactile visual language of the brand. Custom matchbooks, modeled after those found in boutique hotels of the past, provide a poetic utility—ideal for lighting prayer candles or passing along to a friend. With minimal markings and elegant design, they operate as small tools of mystery and presence—subtle ambassadors of the brand and mission.
Avoid overly commercial or massproduced items such as plastic water bottles, cheap mugs, or standard screenprinted t-shirts, which dilute the brand’s sense of heritage and sophistication.
Don't rotate logos or change color
Don't squash or stretch logos
Don't use color stock photos
Don't use drop shadow
Don't use non-brand fonts
THOU SHALT NOT
The strength of The Catholic Center’s brand lies in its restraint, cohesion, and subtlety. Designers must avoid anything that undermines its established aesthetic.
Do not break the color palette by attempting to add additional colors from other schools or organizations; when either the Deep Violet or Yellow Lab colors would clash with a the design of a given application, simply default to the single color versions of the brand elements. Do not disrupt the brand’s warm, archival feel. Color photography is strictly prohibited; all imagery must be in black and white with added grain, halftone overlays, or paper textures. Do not incorporate other fonts.
Avoid all gimmicky graphic effects: no drop shadows, bevels, etc. Never squash, stretch, or rotate the logo. Don’t add color backgrounds to logos. Don’t crop logos. Always use the appropriate mark for the context—informal symbols (like “NYU Catholic”) should never be used in formal materials or settings. Stick to the approved typefaces and hierarchy without substitution. Every design should feel deliberate and cohesive, expressing the brand’s quiet beauty, ecclesial depth, and analog soul.
Don't add a color background to any logos; They're transparent for a reason.
Don't use secondary logos in primary positions
